


Lake Shasta

by Artemis1000



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Post-Season/Series 01, Relationship Study, Reunions, Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-25
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-04-21 03:05:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14275566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Artemis1000/pseuds/Artemis1000
Summary: Before everything went to hell, Ash had promised Michael he would take her fishing at Lake Shasta. It's not Lake Shasta (but then again, they're no longer the people they were.) This moment in time is still good, and it's all theirs.





	Lake Shasta

**Author's Note:**

  * For [monanotlisa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/monanotlisa/gifts).



> I hope you enjoy this little story, happy Space Swap!

“I never thought we would make it this far.”

Ash averted his gaze from the smooth surface of the lake, sparkling in the red sunlight that filtered through the thin pink cloud cover, and looked towards Michael.

A small smile made its way onto his lips as he took her in – her posture still nearly Vulcan straight but her face relaxed, her hands loosely holding on to her fishing rod.

“Yeah, I did I give you a promise.”

There was caution still in her gaze, but no doubt in her voice when she said, “You did.”

And that was that.

Ash handed off his fishing rod to Michael for a moment so he could rummage around in the cooler they had brought. He was downright grinning when he traded it back for a small brown bottle. “Root beer. The most stereotypically Earth drink there is.”

Michael didn’t quite roll her eyes as she accepted the bottle but she certainly looked like she wanted to. It only made Ash grin wider, and that, in turn, made Michael not quite smile on her lips but he could read the smile in the softening of her eyes.

“Told you I’d pull out all the stops,” he reminded her teasingly.

He hadn’t, not really. It wasn’t Lake Shasta as he had promised her. The house near the lake he remembered owning had gone to Ash Tyler’s parents – the real Ash Tyler’s parents. He wasn’t quite that ready to face who and what he wasn’t, or risk running into people who had known the man he remembered being but had never truly been.

And yet, here they were.

The lake was placid and clear, though the water held a faint purple color and the fish sported two heads. _It only makes them bite faster_ , he had told Michael when she teasingly pointed out the discrepancy.

It was strange to hear nothing but birdsong and the rustling of fern-like alien trees, and every now and then the splash of purple water lapping at the rocky shore… and their own voices, quiet and hushed almost as they told another of the months they had been apart.

At the back of his mind he felt bothered by the absence of harsh Klingon voices, the constant background noises that came with life on space ships. Both Ash Tyler and Voq had spent so much time on ships that outer space felt a more natural environment to them than terra firma.

Michael spoke of the Discovery helping with rebuilding efforts and reclaiming its primary function as a science vessel, Ash told her of the work he had done at L’Rell’s side to bridge the gap between humans and Klingons.

Through it, much as he had hoped, they were closing the gap between them word by word.

Their reunion had been joyous, yet full of fear – there had been no time on Qo’nos for anything beyond affirming that their love for another was still real, still strong, that they wanted it to withstand the test of time.

Now, as they sat and talked, Ash’s arm around Michael’s waist, her head soon on his shoulder, he could _feel_ the bonds they had only hoped would last. They were still there, still strong. A little frayed, maybe, but they were a living thing and living things could heal.

It was Michael who raised her head and looked at him with such intensity, her brows arched slightly in that very Vulcan display of puzzled wonder, and then she leaned in and kissed him.

It was Ash who pulled her closer.

The fishing rods dropped to the ground, forgotten.

Under the light of the red sun, they kissed and got to know another anew and as their bond healed, so did they.


End file.
